War done

The town of Aberystwyth is, on the face of it, the place to be for motorists. Since the end of May the Welsh town has been without any traffic wardens, making the town a traffic free-for-all.

And the vacuum of authority is being fully taken advantage of, with people double parking, ignoring yellow lines and able-bodied motorists filling the disabled bays and lorries resorting to parking on pavements.

A law change that passes control of parking from the police to the local council caused the warden redundancies and the chaos that ensued. But as the council won't be able to use these powers until next spring, the situation won't be changing in a hurry.

Chris Mackenzie-Grieve, chairman of the town’s chamber of commerce, said: 'To be honest it is not great. While it has been good for some people, it has had an impact on businesses.

'Delivery drivers are struggling because they can’t find anywhere to park. We are trying to manage the situation, but it isn’t the best position to be in.

'It may sound like bliss, but it hasn’t worked out like that, you do need some rules and regulations to stop people doing something stupid.'

Indeed. And far from it being like heaven, the RAC's Stephen Glaister has described the situation as a 'driver's hell.'